I Have Missed You All!

This has been the busiest holiday season. Something had to give and I am afraid it was my blog. Things are slowing down and I will pay more attention. I do love reading all of your blogs and writing mine and I have missed doing both. I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! Mine was perfect. I did receive some stitchy items which I will share next time. I did some stitching this past month. I stitched Bear Tree Forest by LHN.

I used 32 ct V examplar by LSL and the suggested fibers. Below is a close up of the frame. I love this molding and have used it a couple of times. It's very woodsy.

Up next is my last finish of 2012! It's JM Gardner 1888 by WTNandT. I loved this piece. The colors are perfect for my family room. It worked up quickly and every stitch made me happy.

She will look much better the next time you see her. I plan on taking her to my framer this week. I used 32 ct v. light examplar linen by LSL and the suggested fibers. I started January by PS today. I still have 3 more months left to do in this series. Hopefully they can be finished in 2013.

I will end with a picture of Stella. How cute is she? Digging in the dirt with her nose. She needs to learn to use her paws.

I received this picture as a mouse pad from Santa. Yes, I need a mouse pad. My computer is on a wicker desk that has glass on the top and the mouse doesn't work on glass. So, I get to look at Stella whenever I am on the computer. I want to wish everyone A Happy New Year. Be safe. I will be home with Joanne and Stella eating Chinese food. Chinese food is a tradition that my husband and I started 39 years ago. It continues on. Until next time ...... Happy Stitching! Deborah

A Win, A RAK and Some Ornaments.

It's been weeks since I last did a post. The time has been jam packed. Thanksgiving was wonderful with family, friends and great food. The house is finally decorated. It took longer because I had to see what Stella would tolerate. I finally got into this century. I bought an Iphone and fell in love with it. Since I took that step, I thought that I would dive into Facebook. I know you are all ahead of me but I am slow with change. I want to thank everyone for all the wonderful comments. They mean the world to me. I received the nicest RAK from Angela at the craft room blog. She has a wonderful blog and you all should check her out.

Isn't this the prettiest ornie!? The back is just lovely, as well. It is hung high on the cross stitch tree out of Stella's reach. The card was made by her and is stunning! Thanks again, Andrea. I just love it.

Catherine and the Strawberry Sampler had a Pink giveaway for breast cancer awareness. I won this beautiful design and the floss to do it. I said if I won the any part of the giveaway I would give it to my friend, Kathy. She is coming up to her 5 year anniversary. She was thrilled to have the design and is currently working on it. Thanks Catherine and the Strawberry Sampler for having a wonderful giveaway.

The first 2 will be pillows and the rest will be ornaments. Hopefully, Cheryl and I will find some time next week to finish all of these and start making Christmas cookies. We have the best time baking and doing crafts for the holiday. Before I close, I want to wish my friends, Ellen and Nataly a great Chanukah. Until next time ..... Happy Stitching! Deborah

Feast of Friendship.

I just don't know where the time goes. It's been busy here. I have the Christmas shopping done, not wrapped but bought. The yard is finally cleaned up for the fall. Cleaned some closets. I really hate to do them. The thing is that I finished is the Feast of Friendship by BBD and had it framed. Yeah!

I am in love with this finish. The only thing that I might have changed is the color of the house. They used 3 different colors for it. I probably would have used just one. The frame is gorgeous. I think it is perfect for the piece. The pictures really don't do the piece justice. It's dark here and I had to take the pictures inside. Nine of us from my Wednesday stitching group went on a road trip last Saturday. We went to Bush Mountain Stitchery in N. Brookfield, MA. It's about a 2hr ride each way. We had a wonderful time. I didn't need anything but managed to pick up some designs I have wanted to do.

I love Carriage House designs and was glad to see that she back and designing again. After our lunch in Sturbrige, MA we did some shopping. Went to a quilt store and a primitive style gift store called The Handmaiden's Mercantile. What a great store. Everyone bought something there.

I love Pilgrims and Indians and have a rather large collection. I got a pair of both and a great wool mat. I not sure why I didn't get the Indians in the picture.

I just love the Pilgrim riding the turkey. These were a few of my favorites. I want to wish everyone in the U.S. a Blessed Thanksgiving. I hope your holiday is filled with family and wonderful food. Until next time .... Happy Stitching! Deborah

We made it through Sandy. The house is standing,as well, as the trees. Many branches down and lost power for less than a day. My friends and relatives on Staten Island and long Island fared okay. They don't live on the coast of the islands. They had some wind damage and lost power for afew days. Compared to folks they know on the coast, they were very lucky. My thoughts and prayers go out to all everyone that lost so much. The east coast is due for another big storm Wednesday and Thursday. Those folks really don't need anymore.

I picked up Baby It's Cold Outside from the framer. It came out pretty good.

The frame isn't as orange as the picture suggests. It's a warm brown. I have been working on Feast of Friendship by BBD. I am using 32ct. v buttercream LSL and the suggested GA fibers. I am loving this piece.

You can click on any of the pictures for a larger view. I took the picture in the house at night, so the colors are not showing as nice as they really are. Hopefully, I will be able to finish it this week. I would like to have it hanging up by Thanksgiving. I was reading blogs and saw that Joanne Fabrics had a new Gingher pattern. Off I went Sunday morning to find a pair and I was lucky to find Jennifer. Isn't she pretty?

Before I close I want to thank everyone for stopping by and leaving the greatest comments. Thank so much. Until next time ..... Happy Stitching. Deborah

The wind is starting to howl and the rain is heavy. Just the beginning of Sandy. We spent the day getting ready for the storm. Took in the patio furniture, potted plants and anything else that could go flying. Did some cooking ahead, in case we can't use the stove. Just hoping that trees don't come crashing down on the house. As for the stitching, I started something new. Day after my last post this wonderful design arrived in the mail.

I couldn't wait to start it. It's a great stitch.

I pick it up every spare moment I have. I thought I would show my Halloween tree with all the ornaments. I couldn't get a good picture inside so I took it outside yesterday for some shots. You can click on any picture for a larger view.

It's starting to fill up in nicely. I will add more next year.

This is the pillow that Vonna finished for me. I love it. It's Hilda's Alphabet Brew by With Thy Needle and Thread.

I love Japanese Lanterns. I have a friend who grew them and surprised me with a bouquet. They are so bright and fallish. I will end with a picture of Stella. She is a year old and quite the big girl.

I hope everyone on the east coast stays safe and sound. I have family on Long Island and Staten Island and my prayers are with them. They are going to be hit very hard. I know that we will lose power, so I don't know when I will be back. Until then, thanks for visiting my blog. I love the comments. They mean so much. Until next time ..... Happy Stitching! Deborah

Bits of This and That.

Thanks everyone for all the great comments. I appreciate them all. I am thankful for all who stop by and read my blog. It has been a wonderful fall season in MA. The colors on the trees is spectacular this year. I spent some time last week in Ocean City, MD at the Salty Yarn retreat. More on that in a while. I stitched 7 Halloween ornaments and a pillow that Vonna, of the twisted stitcher fame, finished for me. Her finishing is wonderful. I asked her to do what ever she wanted and she did not disappoint me. Vonna, thanks so much!

I can't pick a favorite. I love them all. You can click on any of the pictures for a better view. I finished Baby It's Cold Outside and I really love it. This piece I started in Ocean City.

When I finished that piece, I went back to Chritmastide. I couldn't do that piece while I was away because I knew I would be frogging big time. Here is my progress to date.

I did pick up Plaid House from the framer. I like it much better framed.

A close up of the frame. I have used this molding before and I really like the rustic look of it. I went to Ocean City and had a great 3 days. It was busy retreat. We had 3 teachers. Belinda from Blue Ribbon Designs, Theresa from Shakespears Peddler and Donna from By The Bay. All the projects were fun and different. I wasn't able to get a picture of Donna's project. It is a wool bag and she taught us stump work.

This is Belinda's design. She is known for doing a large project and then taking some of the motifs to make some smalls. We started on the ort box. Is't it the cutest?!

These are girls I went with. Sue is working with Belinda in the first shot and Nataly and Ellen are in the second shot. We had a great time.

Next up is Theresa's project. She wanted us to make a pin cushion by hand channeling our inner child. It as a fun quick project. They can be tailored to the person you are making it for. I will end with a few shots of Ocean City. We stayed at the Lankford Hotel and Salty Yarns is connected to the hotel. They have a wonderful shop that is really stocked with all kinds of stitchy goodness. I did get some stash, of course.

The weather was warm. Ellen and I had breakfast outside on the boardwalk the day we left. Does it get better in October than that. It has been another lonnng post and thanks for sticking with me. Until next time .... Happy Stitching! Deborah

Plaid House!

Thanks for visiting my little part of the world. The comments you leave mean the so much to me. It was a busy week here in Southern MA. I finished Plaid House by LHN. I used the natural linen called for and I must say I don't really care it. The piece looks good but the fabric wasn't fun to work with.

I started Christmastide at Holly House by The Scarlet House.

Please excuse the lousy picture. I don't iron while stitching. This piece is beautiful but will take awhile to finish. The house is massive. I picked up 2 pieces from the framer.

Ye Be Thankful by Cross Eyed Cricket. I used a plain black molding.

I did this piece last year. It's from Just Cross Magazine. I know that Paulette from PSS designed it. I just love the whimsy of it. Thought I would show somee Halloween finishes from years past. They are all hanging currently.

A close up of the molding I picked. I thought that I

Thanks for hanging in with this picture heavy post. Until next time ...... Happy Stitching! Deborah